Path of the Conqueror
by Master Builder
Summary: After decades of war, things are finally starting to look up for the human race. When the Master Chief stumbles on a secret older than the Forerunners themselves, where will his path take him? Costory between WolfBlade117 and ThunderWry


**Path of the Conqueror Ch.1**

Clank. Clank. Clank.

The dull sound of heavy footfalls sounded throughout the corridor. Scientists and servicemen looked up; wondering what the source of the noise was.

Clank. Clank. Clank.

Eyes widened, jaws dropped. Soldiers who would have faced any enemy in space and beyond now moved aside, in awe and respect.

Clank. Clank. Clank.

Nothing new, apparently.

"Master Chief, report to the bridge. Master Chief, report to the bridge."

He ruthlessly suppressed a sigh.

He stepped into the lift and pressed the correct button, ignoring the technician very obviously not looking at him.

This was his life now. Endless stares, endless grey walls, endless missions.

He was the Infinity's new novelty.

At least, that was what the small voice of emotion in the back of his mind said. The rest was filled with thoughts of logistics, weaponry, armor management, mission objectives.

He was brought out of his musings by the beginnings of a small headache. It was a minor thing, but he still considered taking off his helmet to press his gloved fingers against his forehead.

He was brought back to reality by the technician nervously tapping him on the shoulder.

"Uh, sir? We're at your destination."

He inclined his head and stepped out. The sound of his boots hitting the deck grabbed attention yet again as many people looked up, staring at him as he walked through the command center.

Spotting Captain Lasky near the situation table, he also noticed a familiar figure dressed in the uniform of a Fleet Admiral.

They noticed Master Chief a few seconds later as he stood at attention and snapped off a salute.

"Ah, Master Chief, good to see you still in working condition."

"Thank you, Lord Hood."

"The captain and I were just discussing your next mission. For the past several days, we've been trying to see if we can establish an outpost on this new Forerunner planet we discovered, however, the teams we've sent to the ideal location have reported several members missing. No trace of any of them left aside from a few tools and weapons."

Lasky cut in once Hood was done speaking. "That's where you come in, Chief. We need you go to the outpost and make sure that there is nothing down there that might threaten future operations."

"You did scans of the planet beforehand?" he asked, his deep voice cutting through the chatter on the bridge like a blade.

Lord Hood nodded. "We did, but the material on the surface is different from others we've seen so far. We only managed to get a few meters in before the sweeps couldn't go any further."

Chief nearly raised an eyebrow at that. Even the standard scanners on UNSC ships could penetrate all the way to an average planet's core.

Sighing, the aging man pulled off his hat. "This entire situation is causing us some concern. I'm sure you guess why."

"Yes, sir."

"Good. Head down to the planet and report back within the next hour."

"Yes, Sir" Master Chief replied before turning around and walked toward the hangar bay.

Even as he left the deck many people stopped moving or stopped what they were doing just watching him move toward the hangar bay.

Still ignoring the stares from random crewman, the Spartan thudded through the massive hangar bay.

"Master Chief sir, your ship is ready for drop!" One of the hangar bay crew member called out to him.

Turning his head imperceptibly, he saw the newest class of a Pelican being prepped for departure.

The G79H-TC/MA Pelican, the gunship version of the current UNSC dropship.

Besides the arsenal of handheld weapons that ranged from a Plasma Pistol to an Incineration Cannon, the heavy machine guns on the front and sides provided plenty of punishment to anyone in its way.

And those weren't the only things the Pelican was taking with heavy punishing power. For example, the suit he was wearing.

The newest class of MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armor, the Mark VIII.

When the Mark VII had come out, Dr. Halsey had called it the "pinnacle of engineering. This is the future of powered armor."

However, it was no exaggeration to say that the Mark VIII had surpassed it in every way.

Following the defection of Doctor Halsey, the UNSC had doubled its efforts to destroy the Covenant Remnant led by Jul M'dama. After several months of fervent attempts to capture or kill him, the Navy had taken a ship carrying both the Doctor and the second half of the key.

Practically an entire new galaxy had opened up for the human race.

Locations of Forerunner installations, weapon depots, research stations, and even former population centers had all been on that key. There was so much new information that the first AI to touch it had almost gone rampant over the sudden influx of millions of Yottabytes of data.

This was the third station the Infinity had visited, and already there seemed like humanity was advancing faster than ever before.

However, the Master Chief's report on his meeting with the Forerunner known as the Librarian had brought up more questions than answers.

What had been humanity been like before their fall? Before the Forerunners? Before the Flood?

These outposts were steadily providing answers.

According to the data collected, the Librarian had been the one that de-evolved their ancestors back to their Stone Age roots, before the Halo Rings were fired. After, she'd felt regret for their actions and implanted gifts in the DNA of several humans, himself included.

Now, it seemed as though his very DNA was... changing.

Though widely debated and disbelieved, it had lifted his status and that of the other Spartans, already extremely high, to unheard of levels. Even a new religious order had been formed that pictured him as a god.

Which made him obscenely uncomfortable.

They learned of the Mantle of Responsibility which the Forerunners had followed and wished for the Humans to uphold.

Aside from the history, the technical data gathered was advancing human technology by leaps and bounds. The Mark VIII was the culmination of all the research and expertise humanity could pack into a single suit.

But what a suit.

Everything that scientists could improve had been improved. The outer armor had been synthesized from Forerunner Combat Skins, which made it virtually indestructible. The gel layer beneath the black bodysuit had been improved to the point where it could instantly change its density in response to a threat, making it near impossible for any conventional weaponry to hurt him. The fusion reactor that powered the armor had been replaced with a Forerunner generator, able to power a decent-sized city. The reactive metal liquid crystal now allowed reaction time so fast that anything short of an A.I. flatly refused to calculate it. The shields were triple-layered and strong enough to withstand five shots from a Scorpion's main cannon... at once.

It had cost as much as a large warship. And was worth so much more.

"Sir!"

He looked up.

Three Spartans, five ODSTs, and ten Marines stood before him. The lead Spartan looked at him, helmet-less, with a salute up and smile on his face.

"Sergeant Rogers of Epsilon Company, reporting for duty, sir!" he said, his voice oddly cheerful.

Chief spent a few moments considering them, then returned the salute. "Your orders?"

"We're to accompany you down to the planet and watch your back! Orders from Captain Lasky, sir."

Chief nodded. "...Understood. Prepare to drop."


End file.
